Pearl Jam Rides High "Amongst The Waves"

With all the speculation that Eddie Vedder's attempt at Portuguese at Pearl Jam's European tour finale meant the band might call it quits (they are not breaking up), you might have missed a cool little benefit video the very much alive Seattle band released for current "Backspacer" single "Amongst The Waves," which they hope will raise awareness for ocean conservation and raise a few bucks while they are at it.

Video: Pearl Jam, "Amongst the Waves"

Directed by Ryan Thomas and Brendan Canty, the video for the track features recent concert footage of Pearl Jam, which itself was born when surfing inspired Eddie Vedder to sing for Seattle musicians, mingled with scenes of massive waves and surfers shooting the curl and closes with scenes of oily devastation on the Gulf Coast.

The new video is far from the first time Pearl Jam has put its music to work to help keep the world's waters clean. Going back to 1995, the band began its association with the Surfrider Foundation by donating proceeds from a pair of shows in San Diego.

"Amongst The Waves" is the latest in a long line of Pearl Jam tunes about the ocean, which began with 1991's "Oceans" and includes "Whale Song" (1999) and "Big Wave" (2006). And for those of you tired of just reading about what a big surfer Eddie Vedder has always been, check out the 1992 video for "Oceans" to see some vintage footage of the frontman actually out on the waves (watch for him around 1:16 in the clip).